Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Grete Skarpeid - Beyond Other Stories
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
When a foreign born jazz singer doesn't fall under the spell of the tortured artist effect, the record is already off to a good start. A Norwegian singer and writer that takes her time between releases teams up with a Cuban piano man and they find a sweet spot where they can turn jazz into art (as it) freely and easily it colors outside the lines. A jazz vocal date with a Joni Mitchell in jazz edge, this is a bar raiser for sitting... read more
Bobby Broom - The Way I Play: Live In Chicago
by Mark F. Turner, All About Jazz.com
Guitarist Bobby Broom could have easily taken a different musical direction when he released the popular contemporary/funk jazz album, Clean Sweep (GRP) in 1981. But with his early influences, guitarists Wes Montgomery, early George Benson and mentor/saxophonist Sonny Rollins, he has developed his own unique style on recordings such as Song and Dance (Origin, 2007). This voice is heard in a live setting on The Way I Play , an uncut, as it went... read more
Michael Waldrop - Time Frames
by Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz
4-STARS While percussionist Michael Waldrop's previous work under the umbrella of the Origin imprint was firmly set in the jazz camp, with a pair of big band bonanzas and a magnetic trio date to his name and credit, this set typically moves beyond those borders, often offering an intriguing world music slant on contemporary classical percussion. Highlighting Waldrop's marimba (and vibraphone and drum set) work in a wide variety of... read more
Christopher Icasiano - Provinces
by Max Level, KFJC 89.7FM
Drums and keyboards-everything played by Icasiano, a mainstay of the Seattle free music scene. There are two "suites" here and within each suite the pieces tend to track together. Several of the tracks have repeating-in some cases one could say relentless-drum patterns, augmented with simple keyboard/synth melodies, drones, and sounds. Field recordings pop up occasionally, some of them including voices. I really enjoyed Track 3, a jagged... read more
Hal Galper Quartet featuring Jerry Bergonzi - Cubist
by Tom McCarter, KZSU, 90.1, Stanford, CA
Galper is back with his trio in top form, & invited saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi into the fold. It was an inspired addition to the sound. Bergonzi is one of those distinctively daring players who doesn't get the recognition he deserves. He can be fierce; his tone is muscular. In the trio's ruminations and maelstroms he can sound like the voice of reason, or like a ranting maniac (with a method to his... read more
Mark Taylor - Spectre
by John Barron, All About Jazz.com
Saxophonist Mark Taylor was announced Northwest Instrumentalist of the Year at the 2009 Earshot Jazz Awards. Such esteemed recognition may be due to his high profile supporting roles on Origin Records releases by Thomas Marriott and Matt Jorgensen + 451. For Spectre, his first recording as a leader in six years, the Seattle, Washington-based Taylor presents an inventive set of original, progressive jazz. The quartet setting features Taylor on... read more
Mamutrio - Primal Existence
by Tom Greenland, The New York City Jazz Record
Mamutrio was founded when 19-year-old drummer Jesse Dockx convinced his teachers, alto saxophonist Lieven Cambré and bassist Piet Verbist, to collaborate with him. Primal Existence is an hour-long exposé on how to make a traditional approach sound contemporary. Part of the group's success lies in its demarcated sound registers: Verbist holding down the bottom, Cambré in the upper-middle, Dockx' cymbals on top, his snare and toms filling in... read more
Steve Million - What I Meant to Say
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
Four jazzbos became good friends in Kansas City in the 70s before they drifted away on the sands of time. But it didn't make their friendship drift away as 2019 brought them back together to kick it out as a crew one more time. Deceptively deeper than hotel lobby music, these cats know what to do to power a piano quartet to great heights by breaking a minimum of sweat. Simply a tasty workout that's on the money throughout and always hitting... read more
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